NOTE: Don't worry if you still have questions or if you're still confused at the end of this, you're meant to not have all the pieces. It's a mystery story after all! However, you should be a lot closer to figuring it out!

Chapter Thirteen

River snapped back into time just seconds after she had left Stormcage after having delivered her note to the Doctor on Nezrine. The prison alarms were still going off, but it didn't seem to have anything to do with her since no one was coming to her cell to even check on her. Not even the slightest bit curious about the goings ons with the rest of the prison River busied herself with getting ready to met the Doctor on Eylsiandia.

After freshening up as best she could in the small cell River picked up the copper ring that she was supposed to have delivered on Nezrine. After debating on if she should bring it to Eylsiandia she decided to leave it behind. Going over to her bed she slipped it under the mattress. Turning around River yelped in surprise when she discovered the Doctor standing directly behind her.

"Doctor!" River exclaimed in surprise. "You startled me."

"Why weren't you here?" The Doctor asked icily.

"What do you mean?"

"Where were you?"

"What?"

"I came back tonight, like I promised I would, and you weren't here." He growled darkly. "I waited for hours. Where were you? Why weren't you here?"

"Tonight?" River repeated confused. "You're asking me why I'm not here in the future? How could I possibly know why I'm not here sixteen hours from now?"

"What are you planing?"

"I don't know what you mean." River tried to act innocent fearing that the Doctor was more upset about the note than she had expected.

"Yes you do."

"I'm sorry about Nezrine." River admitted. "I take it you got my note?"

"Don't play games with me." The Doctor hissed.

"I'm just trying to help."

River took a step back at the Doctor narrowed his eyes at her. He looked truly furious which was not something River was used to seeing. Any time she had witnessed his brooding type anger it had always been directed inward at himself. When the Doctor approached River backed up until she bumped into the cold metal bars. For the first time during her stay in Stormcage she wished that a guard would wander by, but the alarm was still keeping them busy. The Doctor reached out and slowly ran his hand through River's curly hair. His touch had always been comforting before, but right now it sent a chill down her spine.

"Doctor, I think you should go."

"Why aren't you here tonight?" The Doctor repeated.

"Why does that still matter?"

"What is the point of keeping you in a cage if you aren't in it when I want you?"

"Excuse me?" River asked indignantly. "I stay in this 'cage' so that you aren't hunted down and murdered by the Silence."

"I don't want you traveling without me anymore." The Doctor said firmly. "Give me the Vortex Manipulator, you won't need it. If I don't come for you, you are to stay here."

"What? No. I've sacrificed enough of my freedom for you..."

"You've never been free, River. I've owned you since the day I added your parents to my collection."

The Doctor's words were painful enough on their own, but it was the casual matter-of-fact tone that he spoke them in that caused River's blood to boil. With her fear instantly replaced by anger River lashed out to strike the Doctor in hopes of smacking some sense back into him, however she found him to be surprisingly quick and ready for her to attack. The Doctor easily snatched her wrist in a painfully tight grip.

"Docto..."

River was cut off as he spun her around and slammed her front first into the bars. He pressed her against the bars with his own weight as he brought her wrist up behind her back towards her shoulderblades. River reached over her shoulder with her free hand and grabbed a fist full of the Doctor's long hair. There wasn't much she could do with the purchase that she had on him, but she yanked him forward as hard as she could and managed to give him a bit of a knock on the forehead against the bars. He didn't fight to free himself from her grip and instead he pressed closer, pushing her harder against the bars.

"Doctor, let me go and I'll let you go." River said as calmly as she could manage. "These items you're collecting, they're driving you mad..."

"What's making me mad is you disobeying me." He growled in her ear.

"Disobeying? Can you even hear yourself? This isn't you. Doctor, please, you're hurting me..."

"Yes I am, and I will continue to do so until I get the answers I want from you. Where are you going to be tonight?" The Doctor demanded as increased the strain on River's wrist. "There must be a reason why you do not return seconds after you leave the way you normally do. Where are you planning on going?"

"If you don't know I can't tell you, you know that! Now let me go!" River snarled as she pulled harder the grip she had on his hair. "Stop this! Any moment now you are going to get caught here and the Silence will be on you again!"

"Tell me what you are planing tonight!"

Still trapped against the bars River just shook her head stubbornly causing the Doctor to jerk up violently on her wrist. She cried out in hopes that one of the guards would hear and that he would be scared off by their approach, but no one seemed to be paying attention. Determined to win the struggle River pulled as hard as she could on the handful of hair that she a hold of. The Doctor growled in pain in her ear but it didn't seem to deter him from continuing to injuring her in return. When her shoulder began to separate River spasmodically released him. When he seized her other wrist he crushed the Vortex Manipulator that she was still wearing in his powerful grip. Not stopping with the time device he began to grind the delicate wrist bones together as well.

"You!" River cried. "I'm going to meet you!"

"Why don't you return?!" The Doctor roared.

"How should I know?!" River demanded angrily. "It hasn't happened yet!"

"And it's never going to!"

"What?"

"I won't let it. He already has the TARDIS, I won't let him take you from me as well."

"What are you talki..."

Before River could finish the Doctor tore her away from the cell bars. Releasing her wrists he wrapped one arm around her waist and set off the Vortex Manipulator that he always wore these days. Trips with the clumsy time travel device were always a little jarring but this time River felt as though her very soul had been ripped open. The Vortex spun widely around and through her as she was pulled from Stormcage. Thrown into the sea of Time River became so disoriented that she suddenly wasn't even sure where she was along her own timeline let alone in space. When she felt someone trying to force her to lay down she instinctively fought against them.

"Easy, River, try to relax."

"Doctor?" River whimpered. "Help me."

"I'm sorry, it's only going to get worse."

"What's happening?"

"Just hold on. I'm right here."

River wanted to open her eyes and confirm that the Doctor really was with her as she felt her reality spinning under her. However, when she did look around all she could see was delapitated orphanage in Florida where she had been raised to be a killer. Welding her eyes shut she could feel a comforting hand running through her hair and she could hear the Doctor's voice, but she could no longer make out the words. Shaking violently she retched against an empty stomach until the back of her throat burned.

Unwilling to open her eyes again River's senses were suddenly invaded by the scent of flowers. She gasped sharply when she recognized the mixture of lavender and rose as being the distinct air of Eylsiandia. Daring to look once more she did not see Eylsiandia like she expected, rather she was looking down on the Doctor who was laying on the floor of the TARDIS with his shirt soaked in blood at the shoulder. Unable to move or act the scene jumped on her once again, the Doctor was looking at her in horror.

"River you've become a paradox."

Taking a breath to ask the Doctor what was happening River ended up arching back and screaming as a searing pain lashed through her broken timeline. Although she felt herself being cradled protectively it did little to mitigate the tearing in her mind as she was pulled further from her original destiny. When the edges of her conciseness started to fade River didn't fight it and gratefully allowed herself to pass out.

River woke with a pounding headache and an uncontrollable shivering. She took a few deep breathes and tried to piece together her thoughts. She could remember the Doctor attacking her at Stormcage, but the memory didn't make any sense. She also remembered seeing him bleeding heavily on the floor of the TARDIS and taking about paradoxes and none of that made much sense right now either. Unsure of what was real and what was nightmare River just concentrated on what was happening right now.

Laying of a soft bed River opened her eyes and slowly sat up. She was in a lavish room with stone walls. Golden moonlight poured in from the open archway that lead to what she assumed was a balcony. A light breeze blew in that held a salty tint to it that spoke of a near by ocean. Getting off the bed River stepped up to a faded chalk drawing on the walk. It was barely visible and mostly smeared but she would recognize the symbols anywhere.

"Why would you write that here, or anywhere for tha..."

River nearly jumped out of her skin with a yelp when the Doctor suddenly snapped into existence in the room next to her, having used the Vortex Manipulator. Beyond just a simple burn under the leather band there was now signs of an active infection peeking out from under the time device strapped tightly to his wrist. He stepped up and put his arms around her waist and leaned in for a kiss as if nothing was wrong.

Now that River had some of the memories of the other timeline in her mind and with her recent treatment at Stormcage fresh in her mind she was in no mood to pretend like nothing had happened. Even though she couldn't make heads or tails of any of her recent memories the mere fact that her thoughts were jumbled was enough to tell her that the Doctor was messing with something he shouldn't be. She put her hands against his chest and pushed him away. The Doctor looked at her confused.

"Don't be angry, River, I meant to be back before you woke, but I had to check something." The Doctor looked her over. "Where are my manners? Are you feeling better?"

"Take me back, now." River said firmly.

"Back? To Stormcage? Honestly I don't think you'll survive the trip."

"What is going on?" River demanded. "Why are you crossing your timeline like this? That's what happened isn't it? My life is a series of fixed points, you told me that once. You pulled me out of an event that was already fixed. You know you can't do that."

"Clearly I can." He chuckled. "I did it for you. I want you to be safe."

"Right now the only threat to my safety is you."

"Never. I love you, I love you more than the fabric of time itself."

"The Doctor loves me, and you're not him."

"Of course I am. I can prove it."

River cried out in surprise as the Doctor took a hold of one of her hands and wrapped his free hand around her waist. She expected a violent move, but instead he merely lead her in a forced waltz type dance across the large bedroom floor. He ended the impromptu waltz with a deep dip and held her there. He tried to kiss her but she arched back further to avoid his unwanted affections.

"Our first formal dance." He announced with a smile. "Step for step. You wore a beautiful gold dress that I picked out for you."

"Any...anyone could know that."

"Really? No one else was there."

The Doctor pulled River up out of the dip and brought her hand up against his chest so that she could feel his twin heart beats. River tried to pulled her hand away but he wouldn't let her. He wasn't hurting her, but she wanted her freedom.

"I was at your trial for my murder, you saw me, no one else could. That wasn't an easy trick for me to pull off." The Doctor drew her closer leaned his forehead against hers. "It really confused the judge when he passed the sentence and you looked at the apparent empty space next you and whispered 'Please don't, Sweetie'. I actually hadn't meant for you to be able to see me either, I certainly hadn't meant for you to see me cry."

River closed her eyes as tears slipped down her face at the memory. She had never known that he hadn't meant for her to be able to see him. He had stood silently at her side for the entire trial, brief as it was. It had only been a few tears that had traced down his cheeks, but at the time it had been more than she could take. The Doctor put his hand under her jaw and guided her to look up at him.

"Our first kiss nearly cost me my life...in fact it did." The Doctor smiled sadly and his eyes flashed gold with regeneration energy. "Luckily for me someone loved me enough to sacrifice everything to give me a second chance. So don't act so shocked when I say I still love you."

"Stop it, I'm not fooled by any of thi..."

The Doctor leaned in and whispered his true name in her ear. River froze in horror. She had been hoping that she was dealing with some sort of illusion or trickster. Although the other information he had was difficult to get it wasn't impossible. His name however was the one true secret that was completely lost to time, it was even protected in her own mind by barriers that he had personally placed there.

"Do you believe me now?"

"No. I'm sorry." River whispered. "You may have been him at one point, but you are *not* the Doctor I know, you are not the Doctor that loves me."

"You're right." He sighed. "And you're wrong."

"What?"

"Just because I'm not the Doctor you knew doesn't mean I don't love you."

"What happened to you?" River asked seriously. "How can I help fix this?"

"Fix this? Why would you want to?"

"Because you're ill, Sweetie."

The Doctor laughed, not his usual mirthful sound, but a maniacal disturbing chuckle that twisted River's stomach. His entire mood shifted from somber to almost giddy. River was too surprised to fight back when the Doctor suddenly swept her off her feet and into her arms. He casually tossed her up onto the bed with alarming strength. River tried to scramble off the far side of the bed but he pounced on her and pinned her down. Holding himself over her he stared down at River like an alpha wolf asserting dominance over a pack member. For a moment she could swear that his hair turned onyx black before shifting to brown once again.

"I'm not sick, River...I'm the next Regeneration."

"No, yo..you can't be the next Doctor, that...that doesn't even make sense."

"I said the next Regeneration. There is no next 'Doctor', I've out grown that title, or rather I've grown weary of it. Doctors fix things, and I have gained no satisfaction or even the slightest gratitude from trying to fix things, I have a new mission now and a new title to go along with it."

"I...I don't understa..."

"You will address me as 'The Valeyard' from now on."

"The Valeyard?"

"Of course you can still call me 'Sweetie' anytime..."